2007 ELECTION STATEMENT AND PHOTOS COUNCILLOR PAUL ANDREWS WORKING FOR YOU

I was elected District Councillor in 2003. In July 2004, I joined with David Clarkson, a retired former senior police officer, to form the Ryedale Residents Group ( Click here for more information on the Ryedale Residents' Group), because we were not satisfied with the way the three larger political groups were failing to address the issues which affect our local community. Our concern was fully justified by events – particularly after ALL Ryedale’s other councillors suddenly decided, without warning, to put up Ryedale’s car park charges by 25% in April 2005. You will recall how the Council continued to defend this outrageous increase, even after the £171,000 anticipated deficit this was supposed to cover turned out to be a £261,000 surplus. I led the campaign, with the support of the Gazette and others, which eventually persuaded the Council to change the tariffs on long stay car parks, particularly Wentworth Street. The Wentworth Street Car Park tarriff was changed from £4-50 to £1-50 all day as a result of this campaign (See picture below). This year, I led the campaign against the proposed imposition of charges on St. Nicholas Street Car Park – which ALL the other council groups are still considering – even though the Council does not need the extra cash.   .I am a Parish Councillor, and have regularly attended meetings of Malton/Norton Town Centre Initiative, Business in Action for Malton and Norton and Malton Town Council. I take office as a full member of Malton Town Council on 3rd May.   I am 59 years old, married with two sons, interested in outdoor sport and recreation.   I was Ryedale’s Council Solicitor from 1988-1996, then in Private Practice and now working free-lance. Events have shown that I know the ropes, and, on occasions this has more than compensated for the small number of the Residents’ Group. This means that although we do not have a lot of power, we have considerable influence and have been able to use it well to help our community.   As mentioned, in July 2004, I joined with David Clarkson, a retired senior police officer, to form the Ryedale Residents Group. David is not standing for election this year, and Nigel Wilson will be standing in his place. Both Nigel and I will stand as Independents. It is our intention, if elected, to work together as an independent Ryedale Residents' Council Group after the election. WE ARE ONLY INTRERESTED IN LOCAL ISSUES Click here to view Nigel's site *****Please view the pictures and information below.**** RESIDENTS GROUP VIEWS ON CURRENT ISSUES:   Emptying your bins – if we are elected, we will campaign for household refuse bins to be emptied once weekly at all times of the year. Click here to find out more   Council Tax – We repeat our pledge to keep Council Tax down, and to seek the setting up of a staffing committee to keep Council staffing levels under review.   The County Unitary Bid – We totally oppose this for many reasons, particularly the cost. For the last four years, Ryedale has largely kept any increase in its share of the Council Tax within RPI inflation limits. County, Police and other authorities with a bigger share of the Council Tax have imposed tax increases well in excess of RPI inflation. This year Ryedale’s Council Tax increase was 3%, whereas County’s was 4.9%. So which authority would you think is best to run Ryedale’s services – Ryedale or County? Click here to find the difference between our aims and those of our political opponents For our views on other issues, please see below and also click here for "My Aims as Your Councillor"

(Photo courteousy the Gazette)

Councillor Paul Andrews (left) with FitzWilliam Estates Manager, Roddy Bushell, Ann Hopkinson, Chairman Malton/Norton Business in Action, Denys Townsend and Gazette Editor, Chris Buxton - just after the Wentworth Street Car Park tarriff was lowered to  £1-50 all day on 19th July 2006.

Councillor Paul Andrews leads the Car Parks Action Group which successfully opposed Ryedale's outrageous 25% increase in charges which was imposed in April 2005.

For more information, click here

Councillor Paul Andrews with John Best admiring the new extension of his house.

John Best says: "We wanted the new extension. We were getting nowhere until Councillor Andrews intervened"

(Photo courteousy the Gazette)

Councillor Paul Andrews in April 2005 with the 700 plus signature petition for a joint use dry sports centre at Malton School.

Councillor Andrews organised the petition in 1999 and led the campaign for the dry sports centre for four years before he was elected in 2003. Click here for the full story

On 29th March 2007, the Council authorised design and other work with a view to the implementation of the Centre, but this was not the FINAL decision.

Click here for articles which Councillor Andrews has written before and since in support of the Sports Centre Campaign

John Taylor of the Derwent Sports Centre Association and Councillor Paul Andrews discussing the proposed joint use Dry Sports Hall at Malton School.

John Taylor says: "Paul's support for the dry sports centre over the years has been much appreciated. His re-election to Ryedale District Council is important for this project."

Councillor Andrews and Reuben Gilderdale with "residents' only" carparking spaces.

Reuben says: "Councillor Andrews helped the residents at this end of Middlecave Road. The County Council was going to stop us parking our cars outside our homes. They told us they had no choice. Paul Andrews intervened and persuaded them to provide spaces for "Residents only" parking."

(Photo courteousy the Gazette)

Richard Scott, Clerk of Habton Parish Council with Parish Councillor Paul Andrews (second left) and others standing by traffic calming measures outside the Grapes at Great Habton.Click here for full story

Richard Scott says: " The village fully appreciates all the help and advice given by Councillor Andrews to enable this project to succeed".Click here for more about The Grapes

*** Click here for the Grapes website ***

Donald Low says:" "We are very grateful for all the work Councillor Andrews put in to helping local residents oppose a planning application for development which no-one round here wants, but which is unfortunately still going ahead".  

RYEDALE RESIDENTS NEWS

The  District Council is about to elect a new Council. This is to let you know some of the things your residents group has done for our Ryedale community.

• Councillor Andrews successfully campaigned to save his local village pub, as the hub of his village community Click here for more about The Grapes Inn;

• We successfully campaigned, with the Gazette, against that outrageous 25% increase in car park charges. We were opposed by 28 councillors and the officers – even when the increase was proved to be completely unnecessary, as the £171,000 deficit it was supposed to cover turned out to be a £261,000 surplus. We won after a year’s campaign. We continue to oppose further increases in parking charges, and will fight to keep St. Nicholas Car Park free.Click here for more information

• We have proposed a staffing committee to keep keep Council Tax down (without cutting services or increasing fees) by keeping the Council's establishment under review. Click here for further information  

• Together with others, we have campaigned for a joint-use dry sports centre at Malton School for years. The school badly needs this facility, and will gladly share it with the community.Click here for more information

• We have supported the campaign to keep Malton Hospital’s maternity wards.

• We have fought for full public consultation on the proposal to build 1800 new houses in Malton/Norton over the next 15 years – again despite the opposition of 28 other councillors, who did not want to consult the public.Click here for article on the LDF.

         Click here for written comments Councillor Andrews sent to the Inspectorate on the LDF

• We have at last persuaded the Council to spend Ryedale’s £8.6M reserves  in Ryedale – and not keep it in the bank and then hand it over to a new authority ( such as North Yorkshire or perhaps a Greater Scarborough Council) following merger and another local government reorganisation.Click here for more information

• In 2003, Councillor Andrews successfully fought for extra money to keep the Malton CAB open all week.

• While Ryedale was focusing its concern in regard to flood prevention on the market towns of Malton, Norton and Pickering, we tried to help the farms and the villages in the open countryside. We asked the Council, as a first step, to instruct an independent engineer to do a desk study at an estimated cost of just £5,000. They refused !Click here for further information

• Together with others, we successfully opposed t the merger of Ryedale’s benefits and Revenues services with Hambleton’s, a move which originally had the support of the Conservative, Independent and LibDem Groups. Our campaign was eventually vindicated by the findings of an independent consultant.Click here for more information

          We are OPPOSING the County Council Merger bidClick here for article

          Pressing for an ENVIRONMENTAL COMMITTEE to deal with Planning Policy and the environment

• We have backed a village council, in their fight to put houses, including affordable homes  onto a site in the very  centre of the village, where Ryedale’s planners want to see light industry or what they would call “a distribution centre” (i.e. a haulage depot), and we won’t stop until the houses are built;

Councillor Andrews says: “We have little power but a lot of influence and have used it well. We are only interested in local issues”.

Published, promoted and  printed by Paul Andrews, 2 The Beeches, Great Habton YO17 6RS